Method and apparatus for rack mounting computer components

ABSTRACT

According to at least one of the disclosed embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a rack mounted system employing vertically mounted computer components in the form of blades for supporting circuit devices. The blades are mounted in a series of vertically spaced apart bays. In each bay, the vertically mounted blades are interconnected to a power distribution unit strip to cause the blades to be mounted compactly. Thus, a pair of sets of vertically mounted blades are attached to opposite sides of the power distribution unit within the same bay. Cooling fan units are positioned between each vertically spaced apart bays to provide vertical air flow through the system.

RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application is related to U.S. provisional applicationsAttorney Docket No. 035734-2002, titled “Rack Mountable ComputerComponent and Method of Making Same”, filed May 31, 2002; AttorneyDocket No. 035734-2003, titled “Rack Mountable Computer ComponentCooling Method and Device”, filed May 31, 2002; Attorney Docket No.035734-2004, titled “Rack Mountable Computer Component Fan CoolingArrangement and Method”, and Attorney Docket No. 035734-2007, titled“Rack Mountable Computer Component Power Distribution Unit and Method”,which are each hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates in general to a new and improvedmethod and apparatus for rack mounting computer components. It moreparticularly relates to such a method and apparatus for rack mountingcomputer components in a compact configuration.

[0004] 2. Related Art

[0005] There have been a variety of different types and kinds of methodsand systems for mounting computer components. For example, reference maybe made to the following United States patents: PATENT NO. INVENTORISSUE DATE 4,258,967 Boudreau Mar. 31, 1081 4,879,634 Storrow et al.Nov. 7, 1989 4,977,532 Borkowicz et al. Dec. 12, 1990 5,010,444 Storrowet al. Apr. 23, 1991 5,216,579 Basara et al. Jun. 01, 1993 5,460,441Hastings et al. Oct. 24, 1995 5,571,256 Good et al. Nov. 5, 19965,684,671 Hobbs et al. Nov. 4, 1997 5,877,938 Hobbs et al. Mar. 2, 19995,896,273 Varghese et al. Apr. 30, 1999 6,025,989 Ayd et al. Feb. 15,2000 6,058,025 Ecker et al. May 2, 2000 6,075,698 Hogan et at. Jun. 13,2000 6,220,456 B1 Jensen et al. Apr. 24, 2001 6,305,556 B1 Mayer Oct.23, 2001 6,315,249 B1 Jensen et al. Nov. 13, 2001 6,325,636 B1 Hipp etal. Dec. 4, 2001 Re. 35,915 Hastings et al. Oct. 6, 1998 Des. 407,358Belanger et al. Mar. 30, 1999

[0006] As a result of having available a large number of different typesand kinds of mounting techniques, a standard has been adopted formounting computer components in racks according to a certain modularconfiguration. In this regard, computer components such as computerprocessor units, and the like, are mounted one above the other in acolumn in standard size rack configurations. The standard is referred toas the EIA-310-D Standard, as clarified by the Server Rack Specification(SSI).

[0007] The housing for each computer device must have a certain heightdimensions according to the Standard. The height dimension must be amultiple of a standard unit “U”. Thus, there can be computer componentswhich are 1 “U” (standard unit) high or multiples thereof. Thus, therecan also be standard rack mountable computer components which are 1 U, 2U, 3 U, 4 U and so on.

[0008] Thus, according to the conventional currently-used standard,racks are provided for storage of computer components in tightly spaced,densely packed horizontal dispositions, and each computer componentmounted in the rack is suitably dimensioned in multiples of standardunit U. The racks are movably mounted on casters or the like so thatthey can be readily positioned in, for example, a computer room having atightly controlled air conditioning system to ensure proper cooling ofthe computer equipment.

[0009] It is highly desirable to configure the computer components inthe rack in a compact and highly dense manner for some applications.Thus, it has been important for many applications to position in thecomputer room or other assigned space as many computer components aspossible.

[0010] In order to compactly mount the computer components on the rackin a high density manner, they are closely positioned one above theother in a column. The data and power cables are positioned in a backplane area or space within the rack.

[0011] For cooling purposes, various techniques are employed. Forexample, individual fans have been mounted within the housing of eachcomputer component. The interiors of the housing have been exhausted toa fan exhaust plenum chamber often times constructed within the rack atone side thereof.

[0012] Such conventional rack mounted systems have several drawbacks.The individual fans mounted in each component are expensive, andtime-consuming to replace in case of malfunctions. Also, the back planespace and fan exhaust plenum chamber are wasted space in that theyoccupy spaces which could otherwise be filled with computer components.

[0013] Additionally, in order to assemble the rack mounted system forinstallation at the site, each component must be installed in placewithin the rack, and then the cabling for each unit is routed within therack at its back plane space. Such an operation is time consuming, andtherefore expensive since highly trained personnel are required to dosuch an installation. Furthermore, once installed, in order to replace amalfunctioning computer component, the entire system, or at least asubstantial portion thereof, must be shut down so that themalfunctioning unit can be disassembled, and a replacement unitinstalled and reconnected electrically. This, too, is time consuming andexpensive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] The following is a brief description of the drawings:

[0015]FIG. 1 is a pictorial view of a rack-mounted system showing thefront, left side and top thereof, which is constructed in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the rack-mounted system ofFIG. 1;

[0017]FIG. 3 is a left side elevational view of the rack-mounted systemof FIG. 1;

[0018]FIG. 4 is a rear elevational view of the rack-mounted system ofFIG. 1;

[0019]FIG. 5 is a right side elevational view of the rack-mounted systemof FIG. 1;

[0020]FIG. 6 is a pictorial view of the rack-mounted system of FIG. 1,showing the rear, right side and top thereof;

[0021]FIG. 7 is a pictorial view of the housing of the rack-mountedsystem of FIG. 1 without various components being mounted forillustration purposes;

[0022]FIG. 8 is a pictorial view of the housing of FIG. 7 illustratingthe process of installation of fan/LAN trays;

[0023]FIG. 9 is an enlarged scale pictorial view of one embodiment of afan/LAN tray for the rack-mounted system of FIG. 1;

[0024]FIG. 10 is a pictorial view of the housing of FIG. 7 with thefan/LAN trays installed;

[0025]FIG. 11 is a pictorial view of the housing of FIG. 7 illustratingthe process of installation of blades;

[0026]FIG. 12 is a fragmentary, enlarged scale front elevational view ofthe rack-mounted system of FIG. 1 illustrating the relative positioningof the fan/LAN trays and the blades;

[0027]FIG. 13 is a diagrammatic, right-side elevational view of therack-mounted system of FIG. 1 illustrating the configuration of theright-side cabling;

[0028]FIG. 14 is a bottom fragmentary pictorial view of the rack-mountedsystem of FIG. 1 illustrating the cabling in the front and right portionof the control bay;

[0029]FIG. 15 is a diagrammatic, left-side elevational view of therack-mounted system of FIG. 1 illustrating the configuration of theleft-side cabling;

[0030]FIG. 16 is a bottom fragmentary pictorial view of the rack-mountedsystem of FIG. 1 illustrating the cabling in the rear and left portionof the control bay;

[0031]FIG. 17 is an enlarged scale, fragmentary pictorial view of oneembodiment of a power distribution unit (PDU) for the rack-mountedsystem of FIG. 1;

[0032]FIG. 18 is a front elevational view of the PDU shown in FIG. 17;

[0033]FIG. 19 is a fragmentary top view of the PDU shown in FIG. 17;

[0034]FIG. 20 is a rear elevational view of the PDU shown in FIG. 17;

[0035]FIG. 21 is a diagrammatic view of the rack-mounted system of FIG.1 illustrating the flow of air therethrough;

[0036]FIG. 22 is a diagrammatic view of another embodiment of arack-mounted system according to the present invention and illustratingthe flow of air therethrough;

[0037]FIG. 23 is a diagrammatic view of yet another embodiment of arack-mounted system according to the present invention and illustratingthe flow of air therethrough;

[0038]FIG. 24 is a diagrammatic view of still another embodiment of arack-mounted system according to the present invention and illustratingthe flow of air therethrough;

[0039]FIG. 25 is an enlarged scale top view of one embodiment of a bladeof the rack-mounted system of FIG. 1;

[0040]FIG. 26 is a left side elevational view of the blade of FIG. 29;

[0041]FIG. 27 is an enlarged scale top view of a heat sink of the bladeof FIG. 25, illustrating it rotated through 90°;

[0042]FIG. 28 is a side elevational view of the heat sink of FIG. 27;

[0043]FIG. 29 is a bottom view of the heat sink of FIG. 27;

[0044]FIG. 30 is a top view of another heat sink which may also be usedwith the computer blade of FIG. 25 in accordance with another embodimentof the present invention;

[0045]FIG. 31 is a side elevational view of the heat sink of FIG. 30;and

[0046]FIG. 32 is a side elevational view of the heat sink of FIG. 30.

DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

[0047] According to at least one of the disclosed embodiments of thepresent invention, there is provided a rack mounted system employingvertically mounted computer components in the form of blades forsupporting circuit devices. The blades are mounted in a series ofvertically spaced apart bays. In each bay, the vertically mounted bladesare interconnected to a power distribution unit strip to cause theblades to be mounted compactly. Thus, a pair of sets of verticallymounted blades are attached to opposite sides of the power distributionunit within the same bay. Cooling fan units are positioned between eachvertically spaced apart bays to provide vertical air flow through thesystem.

[0048] Referring now to FIGS. 1 through 21 and 29 and 30, there isillustrated one embodiment of a rack mounted system 10 according to thepresent invention. The rack mounted system 10 includes a rack housing 12configured generally as a rectangular box having a plurality of verticalbays 14. The embodiment illustrated in the drawings includes threevertically spaced-apart bays 14.

[0049] Each bay 14 is divided into a front bay portion 16 and a rear bayportion 18 by an intermediate transversely-extending horizontal divider19. The intermediate divider 19 is most clearly illustrated in FIG. 7.The bays 14 are formed in the rack housing 12 in a vertical manner oneabove the other. In a bottom portion of the rack housing 12, a controlbay 21 is provided to house various controlled components, ashereinafter described in greater detail.

[0050] The rack housing 12 further includes a fan/LAN tray slot 23 aboveeach bay 14. Each fan/LAN tray slot is configured to accommodate afan/LAN tray such as tray 27.

[0051] The embodiment illustrated in the drawings provides a control bay21 (FIG. 7) having a bottom opening 25 (FIG. 7) for facilitating airflow to receive vertically moving air flow from a vent opening 26 in afloor 28 and vertically through the system 10 as assisted by the fan/LANtrays. At the top of the rack housing 12, an apertured top panel 26(FIG. 1) is provided to permit venting of the vertically moving air flowfrom the system 10.

[0052] At the top portion of each bay 14, in the intermediate regionbetween the front bay portion 16 and the rear bay portion 18, as bestseen in FIGS. 1, 5, 6 and 8, a power distribution unit (PDU) 29 isprovided to supply electricity to various components mounted in the rackmounted system. Each bay is adapted to accommodate a plurality ofcomputer components in the form of open structure computer blades, suchas blade 32 (FIG. 1), in each of the front bay portions 16 and the rearbay portions 18. In the embodiment illustrated in the figures, elevenblades may be accommodated in each of the front bay and rear bayportions. Thus, in the illustrated embodiment, the system 10accommodates 66 computer components in a densely compact, closely spacedconfiguration.

[0053] The bottom control bay 21 is adapted to accommodate variouscontrol components. These control components may include a circuitbreaker junction box 34, as most clearly illustrated in FIG. 6. Thecircuit breaker junction box 34 is electrically connected to each PDU.As shown in FIG. 4, a switch module 36 is also provided in the controlbay 21. The switch module 36 is adapted to control communication betweenthe various blades, such as blade 32, and a network, such as a localarea network, wide area network, or a public network, such as theinternet. Further, the control bay 21 accommodates an air intake fanmodule 38 (FIGS. 1 and 5) for facilitating intake of air through thebottom opening 25 and facilitating vertical air flow through the bladesand the bays 14 and out the apertured top panel 26.

[0054] The embodiment of the rack system 10 illustrated in the figuresincludes four casters 41 for rollably supporting the system on the floor26 (FIG. 5) for easy portability of the rack system 10. Otherembodiments of the rack system according to the present invention may befloor mounted, thereby including legs or skids in place of the castersfor direct mounting to the floor.

[0055] Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, the fan/LAN tray 27 and itsinstallation into the rack housing 12 will be described in furtherdetail. FIG. 9 illustrates one embodiment of a fan/LAN tray 27 for usewith the rack system 10 illustrated in the drawings. The fan/LAN tray 27includes eight suitable fans for facilitating vertical air flow.Although the embodiment illustrated in the drawings includes eight fansper tray, any suitable number of fans may be used.

[0056] In accordance with the present invention, the fan tray may alsobe divided into a plurality of separate trays or tray portions, each ofwhich can be removed independently so that the remaining tray portioncan continue to function. In this regard, it is contemplated that theLAN connections may be made in a unit or component separate from the fantray or tray portions so that the tray or tray portion may be removedindependently of the LAN component. In the front portion of the fan/LANtray 27, a series of LAN connector ports 45 (FIGS. 1 and 9) is provided.In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 9, each fan/LAN tray 27 includes12 LAN connector ports 45, the end one of which may be used for testpurposes. While 12 LAN connectors are shown in the disclosed embodiment,it should be understood that any number of such connectors may beemployed for a given application. Internal wiring leads (not shown) fromeach LAN connector port 45 extend to one of two signal connectors 47(FIG. 9) in the back portion of the fan/LAN tray 27. In one embodiment,each signal connector 47 is a 50 pin signal connector, and is connectedelectrically to the switch module 36. Further, each fan/LAN trayincludes a AC power inlet 49 in the back portion for providing power tothe fans. When installed, power may be supplied to the fans 43 throughthe AC power inlet 49 from the PDU 29, as hereinafter described ingreater detail.

[0057] For facilitating installation of the fan/LAN tray 27 into thefan/LAN tray slot 23 of the rack housing 12, as shown in FIG. 9, guides52 may be provided on the sides of each fan/LAN tray 27. During theinstallation process, the guides, preferably nylon guides, may engagecorresponding member on the sides of the fan/LAN tray slots 23. Further,a locking mechanism may be provided in conjunction with the guides 52for securing the fan/LAN tray 27 into the fan/LAN tray slot 23. Onceinstalled, each fan/LAN tray 27 occupies an area directly above eitherthe front bay portion 16 or the rear bay portion 18. Accordingly, afan/LAN tray in the front and a fan/LAN tray in the rear may completelycover each bay 14 level. Thus, as illustrated most clearly in FIG. 10, atotal of 6 fan/LAN trays 27, in addition to the air intake fan module 38may be provided in a three bay level rack mounted system 10 according toone embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] Referring now to FIGS. 11, 25 and 26, the blades 32 and theirinstallation into the rack housing 12 will now be described in greaterdetail. Each blade is provided with a pair of handles 54 which allow auser to easily manipulate the blade 32 to be grasped by the user toslide the blade into or out of its bay. Each blade 32 may include one ormore mother boards 56. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 25 and 26,each blade 32 includes two mother boards 56 a, 56 b. Those skilled inthe art will appreciate that the number of mother boards included ineach blade 32 may be varied according to design. The mother board mayinclude heat sinks such as heat sinks 58 and 59 for facilitating thecooling of the mother boards. Embodiments of the heat sinks aredisclosed in greater detail in U.S. provisional attorney docket No.035,374-2003, filed concurrently herewith. Further, each mother board isprovided with random access memory (RAM) 61. The amount of RAM 61provided for each mother board may be varied as needed. A pair of powersupply 63 a, 63 b may be provided on the blade 32 for supplying power totheir corresponding mother boards 56 a, 56 b. Similarly, a pair of harddisks 64 a, 64 b may also be provided on the blade 32.

[0059] All of the components are mounted on one side of a rigid plate orsupport 64, which is adapted to be supported vertically within its bay.Each blade 32 includes a cut-out corner portion or section 65 in itsupper back portion. The cut-out portion 65 is sized to receive andaccommodate the PDU 29 therebetween such that two opposing blades 32 and32 a (as shown in FIG. 26) accommodate the PDU 29 almost completely.Thus, a substantially zero footprint is achieved for the PDU 29. Eachblade 32 is provided with an AC power inlet such as an inlet 67 at ornear the cut-out portion 65. Thus, when the blade 32 is installed intothe rack housing 12, the AC power inlet 67 engages electrically acorresponding AC connector such as a connector 76 (FIG. 17) of the PDU29.

[0060] As most clearly illustrated in FIG. 11, the installation of theblade 32 may be achieved in a fast and efficient manner. The blade 32 issimply slid into either the front bay portion 16 or the rear bay portion18 of a bay 14 of the rack housing 12. Each blade 32 is slid back untilits AC power inlet 67 engages a corresponding AC connector 76 on the PDU29. The intermediate dividers 19 serve as a back stop for the blades 32.Each blade 32 is secured in its slot by four blade screws 69, whichattach the blade 32 to the rack housing 12.

[0061] Once the blade 32 has been mounted onto the rack housing 12, ashort blade/LAN connector cable such as a cable 45 (FIG. 12) or a cable71 (FIG. 1) provides electrical networking connection between the blade32 and a network such as a local area network, wide area network or apublic network such as the internet. In this regard, the mother boardsare each mounted at the front of each blade, and thus access thereto isreadily available at front outlets such as at outlet 73 (FIG. 12). Thus,a data connection can be made from the outlet 73, through a short cable45, an inlet 77 of a PDU 29, which is coupled to the switch module 36.

[0062] Referring now to FIGS. 17 through 20, the power distribution unit29 will now be described in greater detail. The PDU 29 supplies powerfrom an external power source, through the circuit breaker junction box34, to the various blades 32 and the fan/LAN trays 27. Each PDU 29includes an elongated PDU body 74, which preferably is formed of a twopiece, 18 gauge steel chassis. Each of two sides of the PDU body 74includes a series of female AC connectors 76. In the embodimentillustrated in FIGS. 17 through 20, each side is provided with 12 femaleAC connectors 76. The twelve connectors 76 correspond to eleven bladesmounted in the front bay portion 16 and the rear bay portion 18 of eachbay 14 and a fan/LAN tray 27. The twelfth connector is for an AC poweroutlet on the front of the fan tray.

[0063] Thus, 12 female AC connectors 76 are provided on each of a frontside and a rear side of the PDU body 74. Each set of twelve female ACconnectors 76 receives power through a pair of power cables 72. In oneembodiment, the power cable 72 is a 15 amp power cable with strainedrelief near its junction with the PDU body 74. As described below, thepower cables 72 are routed to the circuit breaker junction box 34 in thecontrol bay 21. The PDU body 74 may also include a series of mountingstuds 78 for installation of the PDU body 74 to the rack housing 12.

[0064] Referring now to FIGS. 13 through 16, the routing of the variouspower and LAN cables will now be described in detail. As illustratedmost clearly in FIG. 13, the power cables 72 from the PDU's 29 at eachbay level are directed along the right side of the rack housing 12toward the front portion of the rack housing 12 and to the bottom, wherethey are connected electrically to the circuit breaker junction box 34.Thus, in the embodiment illustrated in the drawings, six power cables 72are connected to the circuit breaker junction box 34, since there aretwo from each one of the three PDUs. A set of three cables generallyindicated at 80 are each adapted to be coupled to a suitable source ofAC power to supply power to the system 10.

[0065] As also illustrated in FIG. 13, a set of six LAN cables 81 fromthe fan/LAN trays and PDUs are routed along the rear right side of therack housing 12 to the switch module 36. In the embodiment illustratedin the drawings, two LAN cables 81 extend from each PDU which, in turn,are connected electrically to a pair of fifty pin signal connectors 47.Thus, six such cables 81 are directed along the right side of the rackhousing 12. Similarly, as most clearly shown in FIG. 15, six LAN cables81 extend from the fan/LAN trays 27 and PDUs along the left front sideof the rack housing 12. These six cables 81 are also connected at theirlower ends to the switch module 36.

[0066] Once the rack system 10 is fully assembled with all the fan/LANtrays 27, PDUs 29 and the blades 32 in place, a fully assembled andefficient rack mounted system is provided. In such a system, networkingof the various components provided on the blades 32 is also performedefficiently. In the embodiment illustrated in the drawings, elevenblades are accommodated at each of the front bay portion 16 and the rearbay portion 18 at each bay 14. Thus, in the embodiment illustrated, 66such blades 32 may be accommodated. However, some of the slots may beoccupied by master computer components or blades such as the masterblades indicated at 32 a in FIGS. 4 and 6. In the illustratedembodiment, two master blades 32 a are provided in the bottom of thethree blade bays directly above the switch module 36. The master blades32 a are connected electrically directly to the switch module 36 viahigh speed connections (not shown) such as fiber optic connections. Themaster blades control the switch module 36 to switch communicationbetween the various slave blades 32 and the master blades. Accordingly,64 slave blades may be accommodated by the illustrated embodiment of thesystem. Each of the 64 slave blades may be hot swappable, for example,allowing replacement of the blades 32 without causing the shutting downof the system 10.

[0067] Each fan/LAN tray 27 is provided with twelve LAN connector portssuch as the port 45 (FIG. 1). Eleven of the 12 LAN connector ports 45are adapted to permit communication between the various slave blades 32and the switch module 36. The twelfth LAN connector port 45 allows anexternal user to connect an external device such as a laptop computer tothe network. Further, each fan/LAN tray 27 is provided with a centrallydisposed AC power outlet for connecting such an external device.

[0068] According to the disclosed embodiments of the present invention,and as indicated diagrammatically in FIG. 21, the system 10 illustratedin the figures provides efficient air flow to maintain a cool operatingtemperature for the various components mounted on the blades 32. Airflow is directed from the bottom opening 25 by the air intake fan module38 located in the control bay 21. The air intake fan module 38 directsthe air flow vertically through the various open structure blades 32 ateach bay level 14. The air flow is further facilitated by the fans 43 ineach fan/LAN tray 27 to move the air in its upwardly directed path oftravel. The air flow is directed out of the rack housing 12 through theapertured top panel 26.

[0069]FIGS. 21 through 24 illustrate further embodiments of the presentinvention. As illustrated in FIGS. 21 through 24, the intake and exhaustof the air flow may be varied to accommodate various configurations asto the availability of air supply in the immediate environment. Forexample, in FIG. 22, an air intake fan module 38 a draws air from abottom opening 25 a, similar to that illustrated in the embodiment shownin FIGS. 1 through 21. Air flow is directed vertically with the aid offans 43 a mounted on fan/LAN trays. However, unlike the previouslydescribed embodiment, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 22, the airflow is re-directed from a vertical path of travel at right angles to ahorizontal path of travel out of the rack system 10 a towards the rearof the rack housing. An air flow hood 85 a facilitates the rearwardre-direction of the air flow.

[0070]FIG. 23 illustrates yet another embodiment of the rack systemaccording to the present invention. In this embodiment, an air intakefan module 38 b draws air horizontally inwardly through an opening suchas defined by a perforated plate 87 b in the bottom front portion of therack housing. The air flow is then re-directed upwardly with the aid offans 43 b mounted in fan/LAN trays. The air flow is directed verticallyout of the top portion of rack system 10 b.

[0071] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 24, an air intake fanmodule 38 c draws air horizontally through an opening such as defined bya perforated plate 87 c in the front bottom portion of the rack housing.The air flow is re-directed vertically through this system with the aidof fans 43 c. The air flow is re-directed at right angles to ahorizontal path of travel out of the rack housing rearwardly at the topof the rack housing. The rearward redirection of the air flow isfacilitated by an airflow hood 85 c. It will be appreciated by thoseskilled in the art that other variations on the intake and exhaust ofthe air flow are possible in accordance with other embodiments of thepresent invention.

[0072] While particular embodiments of the present invention have beendisclosed, it is to be understood that various different modificationsand combinations are possible and are contemplated within the truespirit and scope of the appended claims. There is no intention,therefore, of limitations to the exact abstract and disclosure hereinpresented.

What is claimed is:
 1. A rack system for mounting components,comprising: a plurality of open structure computer components; at leastone component bay adapted to accommodate the plurality of components ina generally vertical disposition; at least one fan unit; and at leastone horizontal fan bay adapted to accommodate the fan unit having atleast one fan, said fan adapted to facilitate vertical airflow past saidvertical components.
 2. The rack system according to claim 1, whereinsaid components each include a computer blade, and further comprising apower distribution unit adapted to electrically communicate withvertical blades accommodated by said blade bay, said power distributionunit being further adapted to provide electrical power to said blades.3. The rack system according to claim 2, wherein said power distributionunit is further adapted to allow communication between two or more ofsaid blades and between a blade and an external computer.
 4. The racksystem according to claim 1, wherein said blades are rectangular.
 5. Therack system according to claim 1, wherein said blades are computercomponents.
 6. The rack system according to claim 1, wherein said fantray includes a plurality of horizontally distributed fans.
 7. A racksystem for mounting components, comprising: a plurality of computerblades adapted to be vertically mounted; two opposing blade bays, eachblade bay being adapted to accommodate the plurality of vertical blades;at least one fan; at least one fan bay adapted to accommodate said fanfor facilitating vertical airflow; and an intermediate distribution unitbetween said opposing blade bays, said distribution unit being adaptedto interface with one or more of said blades.
 8. The rack systemaccording to claim 7, wherein distribution unit is adapted to provideelectrical power to said blades.
 9. The rack system according to claim7, wherein said distribution unit is adapted to allow communicationbetween two or more of said blades and between a blade and an externalcomputer.
 10. The rack system according to claim 7, wherein said bladesare rectangular.
 11. A rack system for mounting components, comprising:means for accommodating two opposing sets of vertical blades, each setof blades being in a horizontally spaced-apart configuration; airflowmeans for facilitating vertical airflow between said vertical blades;and interfacing means for interfacing with said opposing sets ofvertical blades.
 12. The rack system according to claim 11, whereininterfacing means is adapted to provide electrical power to said blades.13. The rack system according to claim 11, wherein said interfacingmeans is adapted to allow communication between two or more of saidblades and between a blade and an external computer.
 14. The rack systemaccording to claim 11, wherein said blades are rectangular.
 15. A methodof cooling rack-mounted components, comprising: mounting at least onefan vertically adjacent to a blade bay, said blade bay adapted toaccommodate a set of blades; vertically mounting a plurality of bladesin said blade bay in a horizontally spaced-apart configuration; andcausing said fan to facilitate vertical airflow between said blades.